17th-ranked Cowboys set sights on Red Raiders

Lubbock, TX (Sports Network) - The 17th-ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys finish
up a brief two-game road swing on Wednesday night when they mosey into United
Spirit Arena to challenge the Texas Tech Red Raiders in a Big 12 Conference
showdown.

Oklahoma State stumbled out of the Top-25 by losing four of six earlier this year, but since that slide it has been the hottest team in the Big 12, winning five games in a row to improve to 17-5 overall, and at 7-3 in the league it is just a game out of first place. The Cowboys most recently traveled to Austin and made easy work of Texas on Saturday afternoon, 72-59.

Meanwhile, Texas Tech has failed to assert itself as a legitimate contender in
the conference, as it sits at 9-12 overall (2-8 in the Big 12) after losing
four in a row and eight of its last nine. The Red Raiders faced off with
Baylor on the road this past Saturday and were blown out of the building in a
75-48 final.

Oklahoma State dominated the first meeting between these two teams earlier
this season, winning 79-45 in Stillwater on Jan. 19. The Cowboys have now won
five straight over the Red Raiders and nine of the last 11 overall.

The Cowboys actually had a very poor shooting night by their standards the
last time out, making less than 37.5 percent of their field goal attempts, but
they held Texas to just 39 percent shooting, outscored the Longhorns from the
foul line (26-12), and dominated the rebounding battle (46-34) as they walked
away with the 13-point victory. Marcus Smart was once again outstanding,
pouring in 23 points while adding seven rebounds, three assists, five steals
and two blocks. Smart, a freshman, is one of the top guards in the country and
has been stuffing the stat sheet all season long with 14.6 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 4.6
apg, 3.0 spg and 0.8 bpg. Also performing well in the team's latest win was
Markel Brown, who shot 5-of-11 from the field en route to 17 points, and
Le'Bryan Nash, who logged 14 points and nine rebounds. On the season, Brown
leads the team with 15.4 ppg, while Nash (13.1 ppg) and Phil Forte (11.2 ppg)
are also consistent scoring options. OSU is a well-rounded squad at both ends
of the floor, ranking fourth in the league in scoring offense (71.6 ppg) and
third in scoring defense (60.5 ppg).

Texas Tech never had a chance over the weekend against Baylor, as it shot just
28.8 percent from the floor (including 3-of-15 from 3-point range) and
committed 17 turnovers as it netted fewer than 50 points for the fourth time
this season. It went without a double-digit scorer on the day, with Jamal
Williams leading the way with eight points and seven rebounds. Josh Gray was
awful from the field (1-of-8), but he did hand out eight assists. Scoring has
been an issue for the Red Raiders this season, as they put up 66.0 ppg. Their
defensive effort doesn't often help matters, as the team ranks last in the
conference in surrendering an average of 70.4 ppg. Despite starting just two
games, Jaye Crockett is the Tech's top performer with 12.0 ppg and 7.1 rpg.
Jordan Tolbert (9.4 ppg, 5.7 rpg), Dejan Kravic (9.2 ppg, 5.3 rpg) and Gray
(9.0 ppg) have been solid if unspectacular, with Tolbert and Kravic both
shooting greater than 52 percent from the field.